Hot and in Heat
by Kit Fox94
Summary: It's Sakuras 18th birthday... and it goes horrible! Kakashi's the only one who can help. Sasuke comes back, and causes a whole lot of problems. Best summary I can come up with, sorry if it sucks. Please be nice and review. Chapter 9 LEMON!
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER  
I do not own the Naruto anime, or its characters.

A/N: This thing's been in my head for over two years now, so I'm sorry if it sucks.

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_Chapter 1: The Birthday Fiasco_

'Where is everybody?' wondered Sakura, as she walked through the academy. Even though it was Saturday, there was always one group or other having a meeting here. 'Why did Ino tell me to meet her here?' she thought, as she almost walked into her longtime friend. "There you are! Where've you been?" Ino shouted, and without giving her friend a chance to answer, started to drag her to the rear-training field.

"Ino, what's going on?" Sakura asked, as she finally yanked her wrist free. "You'll see." That was all she got, as Ino started pulling her again. When they got to the door leading outside, Sakura yanked herself free again and said, "Listen, Ino, I don't know what you're planning, but if it's going to waste my time, no thanks. Now, if you don't mind, I would like to start celebrating my eighteenth birthday, so goodbye!" As she was about to leave, Ino opened the door and shoved her through. The next things she heard were shouts of "happy birthday!" She opened her eyes after a minute to find that all of her friends were there.

But there was only one person that caught her eye at the moment, though. Kakashi was standing near the outer fringe of the group looking unbelievably hot in a form-fitting T-shirt that showed his slim arms and well muscled chest, a pair of jeans that showed a pair of long, lean, well-muscled, legs, and a collar that she couldn't quite see from this distance. She'd had a crush on him for a few years now and she noticed that he'd gotten a haircut and that his spiked hair was now relatively even, very short compared to the last time she'd seen him (the longest hairs were probably five to six inches long making him look like a sheep dog with a hair cut) and actually paying attention to gravity. But the thing that had really caught her attention was that he wasn't wearing a mask and that he had a face that could have put Botticelli angels to shame.

Then someone hit her on her back and snapped her out of her reverie; it was Naruto. "Hey, Sakura, are you back on Earth yet, or are you still in outer space?" Damn, when did he get so observant? Everybody finally dispersed and Sakura finally saw why Ino had told her to bring her swimsuit; there was an Olympic-sized pool in the back of the field.

"Sakura, come on!" she noticed that some of her friends were in the pool. She also saw that Anko had gotten out and was walking (more like sauntering, in her opinion) toward Kakashi, she saw them talk for a minute, Kakashi said something, Anko got pissed at whatever it was, and walked away with a confused scowl on her face.

Next thing she knew, Ino was standing next to her, apparently asking her a question. "Wh-what?"

"I said, are you going to go change and get in the pool or not?"

"Oh, y-yeah, just give me a minute."

"Okay, just hurry up."

Sakura went into the changing room and changed into her black two-piece swimsuit. Ino had bought it for her seventeenth birthday. She'd had her misgivings about it (mainly about how much it showed), but now she kind of liked it (because she'd gained a missing asset). She's developed a lot more of a chest since last year, when she'd had almost nothing. She smiled and remembered the past year, when she'd gone from an a-cup to a c-cup. Guys had definitely noticed it too. She remembered the one who'd somehow overcome the fear that he'd get hit through a wall for asking.

**FLASHBACK**

_**She had come out of the clothing store with a few bags of shirts (she'd out grown most of her old ones for obvious reasons) when some guy had walked up to her, eyes on her chest, and stuttered out a request for a date. She'd taken pity on him and started a conversation, purposely avoiding answering his question. Then he'd pulled out his pick-up line,**_

"_**You know, I've actually been on a mission with some guys from ANBU." he bragged.**_

"_**Really?" she asked, humoring him.**_

"_**Yeah, I was the only one who survived the mission."**_

"_**Then why aren't you in ANBU?"**_

"_**I would be, but the guys up top might be scared of me, though."**_

"**Wow, he must have really thought this one out before using it**_**," she thought slightly impressed.**_

"_**Could I get a look at the file?"**_

"_**Sorry, it's level-three classified."**_

"_**I must admit, Mataro, you've got me a little curious now. So what's the file number, again?" said a very familiar voice from behind her. She turned to see Kakashi, as usual, in full uniform.**_

"_**K-kakashi-sampai! Wh-what are you doing here?" Mataro asked, a little flustered.**_

"_**I was in the café, and heard you talking, and I got curious. So, I ask again, what's the file number?"**_

"_**Kakashi-sempai, if you were listening, then you must have heard me tell Sakura-san that it is level-three classified."**_

"_**Oh, yeah I heard, but it's okay, because I've got clearance at that level." He stated, smiling as if he found it amusing that this kid was trying to act superior to him.**_

"_**You're lying!"**_

"_**Well, if you think I am, how's this?" He pulled out his wallet, opened it, and showed them two ID cards, one showing a picture of him in an ANBU uniform, a diagram of the regulation mask off to the side, his present stats, and his starting rank, should he ever be reactivated (a general? Shit, how many times did he get promoted?!), the other showing him in plain clothes, with a mask (no duh), saying, plain as day under the picture, 'KAKASHI HATAKE: LEVEL-SEVEN SECURITY CLEARANCE.'**_

_**Sakura turned to see Mataro's reaction, and saw that he'd gone to about thirteen shades off white; not five seconds later, he went paler than a hospital bed sheet, turned, and ran like the hounds of hell were on his heels; he didn't look back. She turned back around and was just able to catch a glimpse of the look that had sent him running; the look on Kakashi's face might have frozen Orochimaru's blood. She felt the urge to follow Mataro's example. She wouldn't have been surprised that if Armageddon had come right then, and it had had a face, it would have had that look, no doubt about it. He turned to her and gave her a warm smile that completely contradicted his expression of a second ago.**_

**END FLASHBACK**

She shivered, shaking herself out of those thoughts, took a few deep breaths, and walked out of the changing rooms; almost every male head turned her way, including the one she wanted. He looked her up and down with open appreciation for what he saw, they made eye contact, and she felt a shock run through her. She started walking toward the pool when she reached the four feet of concrete surrounding the pool; she felt something on her back (a hand?) and fell to the concrete. When she was about a foot from making contact, she felt two bars wrap around her middle. When she was back on her feet, she realized that the bars were arms; she turned to thank whoever had saved her and was about to accidently kiss… Kakashi. His hand was stopping her from turning it into a full kiss. At the moment, her nose was even with his throat. When she inhaled she got a nose-full of cedar, rain, and cinnamon. All of a sudden, she got the urge to… attack him… sexually; she shocked her self with that one; she had a crush on him, but surely it wasn't strong enough to want to attack the guy, was it? She shook her head slightly, clearing it. She promised herself that after this, she would breathe through her mouth around him.

While she had the chance, she examined the collar he was wearing. It was black leather, embossed with blood red, sickle-shaped, crescent moons with the tips pointing toward the top of the collar, with two ANBU issue dog tags hanging from two one inch chains on either side, and one smaller, more delicate chain, connecting them. She also noticed his eyes (since the Akatsuki, they'd found a way to give him enough control over the sharingan to activate and deactivate it at will; since then it had changed from Uchiha-grey to an odd shade of cobalt-blue-and-silver that highlighted the equally odd shade of garnet-red-and-gold in his right eye)… something wasn't right about them, besides their obvious bi-coloration, but she couldn't figure out what it was.

He let her go, turned around, and said, "Fine, I'll do it. But only this time; got it Naruto?"

"Got it!" and then he ran off (most likely to tell fifteen other people, who would then continue the chain until everybody knew).

"I wish I'd thought to train him to control his mouth." Kakashi muttered under his breath.

"Your fault on that count."

"I know," he sighed, "well, better go change, see you later."

"See you, and good luck."

"Thanks, I'll need it."

He went to his bag, grabbed his swim trunks, and went in to the changing room. While he was doing that, she jumped into the pool and talked to her friends. A few minutes later, she heard someone sigh and then a thud, most likely meaning that whoever it was had fainted.

She turned and later could have sworn that her heart had stopped beating for a moment. Kakashi stood there in only his swim trunks, looking like some god of temptation that she had never heard of, with a complexion that most women would murder for, muscles showing that he wasn't built entirely for fighting, but that he could certainly hold his own, and that he could keep up in a race with out too much problem. Dressing the way he had for the last few years, she never would have guessed at his build being, not skinny, but slim, and she would have bet everything she had that he had the grace of a hunting panther (with the silence to match, though she already knew thanks to prior missions with him), and his face… it wasn't fair; nobody should look that good. His jaw was fairly strong, but it was round enough to give an idea of youth, lips that she wished he hadn't stopped her from feeling earlier, a nose that was a little long but fit his face to perfection (no wonder he wore a mask); when someone (Yumi? She thought her name was) shoved next to him intent on getting a picture with him he shoved her aside with something that sounded (and looked) suspiciously like a snarl, and she saw that he had straight, white teeth, with fangs that looked like they could be longer than an Inuzuka's and that could probably rip out a good chunk of some body's throat. He walked to the diving board, climbed the ladder, and dove. It was nothing special, but he got quite a few whistles from the women. She guessed that he would be getting quite a few phone numbers later on. He broke the surface of the pool, swam to the edge, got out, and just for show (she thought at the time) shook off any excess water on him like a dog would; in fact, she was surprised that he didn't sprout fur right there. A breeze blew by, carrying his scent to her, and she inhaled it for the second time that day. There it was, that urge to attack him.

'Figures that he'd have a scent to match his looks,' she thought to her self.

'**You're telling me,' replied her inner self.**

'Gods, I wish he were just a _little_ less attractive, so that I could actually have a chance at him!'

'**What the fuck are you talking about?!'**

'Think about it, do you think we have a chance against all the other women he's probably been with?'

'**Of course we do. Didn't you see how he pushed Yumi away so roughly? She's considered a goddess to all the other guys!'**

'Well, now that you mention it, he really _doesn't_ seem to take an interest in women like her, in fact, I'm pretty sure that he's been paying a lot of attention to me lately.'

'**Yeah, now if only he would act on those looks.'**

'Mm-hm, Kami-sama I wish he'd invite me over to his house.'

'**May I ask why?'**

'So I could get ready to have some 'fun' with him.' She realized what she'd just thought. 'No! I can't believe I just thought about doing that!' She screamed in her head.

'**Well, you did.'**

'No! How could I? I mean, he's thirteen and a half years older than me!'

'**So? You've been thinking about him for years.'**

'But not like this!'

'**You're eighteen now, it's legal.'**

'But it still feels so wrong.'

'**You're just saying that. Face it; you want him. Who could blame you, anyway? He's a fucking sex-god!'**

She didn't have a reply to this.

She'd been in the pool about an hour doing laps around the perimeter, and talking to everybody, when Naruto shouted that it was time for her to open her presents. She got out of the pool, changed back into her clothes, and walked over to the tent that obviously held the presents, food, and drinks (Choji and his dad went all out, preparing for a very big group).

It went by rather quickly; she got a metal edged (and obviously lethal) fan from Neji and Tenten, a book on different sex positions with very detailed pictures from Ino (she made sure no one saw that one), a book on medical studies and theories from Hinata and Naruto, some scrolls showing how to execute complex genjustu from Kurenai and Asuma, a weekend pass to a spa in Sunagakure (she was going to have to thank Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari for that one next time she saw them, since they'd only stopped by long enough to drop it off), lingerie from a few other girls, and a Siamese kitten from Kakashi; she tackled him for that. It was then that she realized that Kakashi seemed to be trying to make sure that she had a good time without any problems, and she wondered why.

Then Naruto came up to her and she caught an unusual scent coming off of him.

"Naruto, what's that smell?"

"Huh? Oh, well I fell into some catnip on the way here; I didn't think anyone would notice."

Three things happened next; She inhaled, Kakashi, who had been a few feet away, freaked out and grabbed Naruto, yelling at him, and she sneezed.

The next thing she knew, she had a long, black tail sprouting from her tailbone, and claws that were one and a half inches long; she saw her reflection in a tray that had slid to the ground, and saw that she had round, furry, ears to go with the tail, amber-colored eyes with slit pupils, and inch long fangs overlapping her lower lip. Everyone looked at her, and then the only thing she heard was screaming; it hurt her new ears. The only thing she saw was running; the colors were vivid to her new eyes, so much so that she had to close them and curled into a ball. When everything was quiet again, she uncurled and saw that she wasn't alone; Kakashi stood not twenty feet away, with a look of reluctant acceptance on his face; she noticed several others with him, including Kiba and his mother, and Shino and his father. Then she understood, they'd known; they'd known and they hadn't done anything to stop it. She made a sound like a large cat yowling and passed out.

When she woke up, she was in an unfamiliar room, on an equally unfamiliar couch, with her only company being a large mound of fur that appeared to be an animal, and asleep at that. She looked down at herself and saw that she still had the claws and tail. She looked around for a clock and found that she'd been out cold for four hours.

"So it wasn't a dream." She said with a sigh. She noticed the mound of fur move, and looked over at her companion; it had uncurled and she now saw that it was a sleek, white, dog that was big enough to be a wolf; the proportions were right, but except for the legs and head, the build was that of a fox; she also noticed that the paws, ears, and the last three to four inches of fur on its tail were black. Then she saw its eyes; they were red with football shaped pupils, as though its eyes couldn't decide whether to be round or slit like hers most likely still were, and the look they had in them… she could have sworn that she'd seen these eyes before, but she couldn't place where; but the really odd thing was that it had an almost human look in its eyes. Then she noticed the collar it wore, black leather, embossed with blood red crescent moons, with two dog tags hanging from one inch chains with a smaller chain between them; she guessed that Kakashi must have been this dogs owner, meaning that this could be his house.

"You're almost as unusual as me."

"_Actually, I'm just as unusual as you,"_ said a velvet-smooth, clear, very male voice.

"Huh? What was that? Who's there?" She asked the room, looking for the source of the voice but finding no one there.

"_I'm over here." _The voice said with some amusement.

She looked over at the dog, "Are you… talking…to me?"

"_Yes and no. Are you alright, though?"_

"Um, kind of. What do you mean 'yes and no'?"

"_Well I suppose that that's the best that I can hope for at this point. And when I say 'yes and no', I mean that while it is true that you can hear me, I am not speaking to you through my mouth but through my mind. Does that make any sense to you?"_

"I suppose so."

"_Again, all that I can hope for. I must admit though, I'm surprised at how well you're taking all of this in, although I have the feeling that that's only because the shock of it all hasn't set in yet. Would I be right in that assumption?"_

"Probably."

"_Yes, well I would love to explain to you right now, but I'm afraid I must cause you one more shock before that. Wait! It's best that you stay, so that we may get it over with." _(She had gotten up to leave.)

"Okay, lets get this over with." She sighed sitting down again.

"_Now, there's just one thing that I ask of you, and that is to stay calm. Understand?"_

She nodded.

Suddenly, the dog lost its form and became a quivering mass of black in the most basic shape of a dog. Then it started shifting, and after a moment it had the basic shape of a human, but it retained the ears and tail of the dog, although they were proportioned to the human shape now. The next thing she knew, she was looking at her former teacher and crush, Kakashi. During all of this she'd had an extremely scared look on her face, but she'd kept quiet, not because she was supposed to, but because she was too scared to make a sound. Then he looked over at her and asked her, concern foremost in his voice, "Sakura, are you alright?" (She'd looked like she was about to pass out again.)

Kakashi reached out to steady her, but she cringed away with a look of fear and confusion on her face. As she sat there, Kakashi looked at her with an expression of resignation on his face. Finally, he broke the tense silence,

"Alright, Sakura, what do you want to know?"

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A/N: I would like to thank linkinparkguurl51 for the beta and helping me get this thing out of my head, my cousin for helping me come up with it, and my friend for the extra set of eyes. And I know that I messed with some thing's, but too bad!


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2: The Explanation**_

A/N: Well, here's chapter two for ya. Hope you like it, please R&R. Nothing really happens in this chapter, it's just as the name is: an explanation. More will be explained as I go. To those of you who read it, THANK YOU!

DISCLAIMER: I only own the fic, nothing else.

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"_Alright, Sakura, what do you want to know?"_

He kept an eye on her face, so that if she decided to bolt (it happened a lot with youkai just coming into their powers, especially with females), he could catch her before she got anywhere near the door.

He watched her inhale a few times, and then she said,

"What ever I need."

He smiled at her response; this was the Sakura he knew.

"Ah, figures you would ask for that much information. Well, for starters, you and I are what could be called youkai, or nowadays, humanoids… Hey, you want to know this stuff, so therefore, you don't get to interrupt, k?" She'd opened her mouth to ask another question, "Now, while 'youkai' is the term we use for ourselves, humans, in this day and age, prefer to call us 'humanoids', 'shape-shifters', 'demons' or--and this one's my personal favorite--'mutants'. Also, while we do not walk around in our natural form—which, by the way, is the form we are in now—there are more of us; in fact, now that I think about it, approximately thirty percent of the Konoha population is youkai."

"So, how did the youkai… race… start exactly?" She said with an interested look on her face.

"To that, I have no answer, for everyone who knows, has either died a natural death, or has been killed by one of the few humans who believe that we exist, and for some odd-ball reason, when humans find out that we exist, most of them would rather see us destroyed than see us prosper; in fact, as far as I know, the only two clans of humans that have accepted us were, and still are, the Inuzuka and the Aburame; they, instead of fearing us, were curious about us, and accepted us after a little while, and in return we treat them as we would treat our own."

"What did you mean when you said that you were just as unusual as me? Because, as far as I can tell, you're just an ordinary youkai." She asked, her face showing as much confusion as interest now.

He chuckled, then asked right back, "Tell me, Sakura, when I first uncurled out of that lump of fur on the floor, were you able to put me as definitely a wolf, definitely a fox, or were you unable to decide?"

"Oh."

"Yeah, 'oh'. I'm unusual because, when my parents had me I didn't take after either of them, while normally, when a child is born to parents of two different species, the offspring will take after one of the parents with almost no influence from the other. In my human form it's quite obvious which parent I took after, but in my animal form, that distinction is all but gone, as you may have noticed."

"Are there many half-breeds?"

"Depends on your definition of 'half-breed'; there are three main classifications; the most common one—though please note that half-breeds are not at all common—includes you, meaning any youkai with one human parent and one youkai parent who resembles a human until they reach adolescence, at which point, they're powers will come in at any point of the day, though usually before sunset, at the latest. The second one includes me, meaning that I have two youkai parents and I take after neither of them, and at the same time, both of them. The third one is one that you will almost never see, because this type of half-breed, is, in essence, a mutant, in the fact that they have one youkai parent and one human parent, but instead of living life like a common half-breed, looking like a human and then upon getting their powers, they will bear a strong resemblance to the youkai parent, but will forever be in human form, and they will usually develop an obsession with whatever species of animal they most resemble. Ring any bells?"

"Orochimaru was a youkai?" She asked, with horror written all over her face and dripping from every letter she spoke.

"Yes, a sad example of the youkai race, but there you have it. So you and I are both half-breeds, but for completely different reasons."

"What did you mean when you said that half-breeds weren't very common?"

"I meant that there's about one half-breed for every two-thousand and fifty-nine births."

"So how did I happen? I mean, I know how I happened, but _how_ did I happen? I'd imagine that it doesn't happen everyday that a youkai and a... a human get married."

"Honestly, I have no idea. You and you're father pulled a major first on the whole race, in that he got a female child when most half-breeds are male, and that you're powers didn't show up until you reached adulthood."

"Did you're birth raise as much hell as mine did?"

"More so, because my family is, sadly, of very high political standing."

"What, like a daimyo?"

"Different system of running things in this race; in youkai society, my rank would be referred to as an archduke, and don't worry I'll teach you how this all works eventually."

"Is there anything else I don't know?"

"Oh, Sakura, there's so much you don't know, that it's not even funny."

"Hey!"

"Sorry, I couldn't resist." He said, looking totally unrepentant.

Throughout the conversation she'd had a look of rapt curiosity, but at his latest comment, she had gotten a very cute pout on her lips.

**'Hm, I wonder what those would taste like… Whoa! I shouldn't be thinking things like this! Where did that come from, anyway?'**

"So, is there any way that you could help me with my apparent ignorance?"

**'Oh, I could teach you so much, Sakura.'**

"Huh? Oh, yes, there's a book that I've got that you should definitely look at."

He got up, walked over to a bookcase on the other side of the room, pulled a rather thick and ratty book off of one of the crammed shelves, and tossed it to her. She caught it easily enough, looked at it, and he watched her reaction as she saw what kind of book it was.

"I'm guessing that you haven't been paying much attention to animal species, so here's something to get you up to date. I want you to study and memorize all of the omnivores and carnivores; I want you to study everything about them: feeding habits, migration patterns, if they have any, social behaviors, any distinct markings that would help you to identify the species, sounds that are common to the species, and the formal and informal names, all of them. I want you to come back in a few days so that I can quiz you. Also—"

He stopped himself as he got a whiff of something that was very intoxicating, and brought a temporary haze into his head. He shook it, and wondered where that oh-so-tempting scent came from. As he started sniffing, he realized that the scent came from Sakura. Why would he be affected by one female that wasn't even in heat, when he was surrounded by females that _were_ in heat twenty-four seven? He'd have to get back to that, in the meantime, there was one more thing that he had to address.

"Sakura?"

"Yeah?"

"Is your period going to start soon?"

Yeah. How'd you know?"

"I can smell it. Oh shit, this is bad, very, very, bad."

He had started pacing around the room in aggravation about the situation that she'd put him in, because on the one hand, he was her only hope if she wanted to stay out of marriage for any length of time, but on the other hand, her heat seemed to have a _very_ powerful effect on him, and she wasn't even really in heat! …Oh fuck it; she was his Succur (1)!

"What's wrong?"

"You're going to have to stay here there's no other way—"

"Kakashi, what are you talking about?!"

"You're about to go into heat, and let me tell you, a young female in heat, especially her first, should not be walking around the village alone."

"Kakashi, I don't think I'll be any safer here than at my house."

"Sakura, this is a boarding house specifically for females in heat, who don't want to be mated yet. And by mated, I mean forced into a marriage that you can't get out of, no matter how much you want to. All it takes is one bite, hard enough to scar."

"Well, why here and not somewhere else?"

"Because, this is the only building in Konoha that is fully prepared for any number of females in heat."

"Okay, where's the owner? I'll go get myself a room."

"I am the owner of this place. Now, wait, wait! Listen to me, my family, and therefore I am, naturally resistant of a females heat scent, no one knows why, we just are."

"How do I know you're not just lying to me?"

Smart girl. "Because there are fifty other tenants staying here right now, and I haven't even touched any of them. If you don't believe me dinner's in ten minutes, so you can ask them yourself."

"If there are fifty other tenants staying here, why haven't I heard them? Fifty women aren't exactly quiet."

"The walls, doors, and windows are soundproof, for privacy purposes."

"Fine, I'll meet them, but that's all I'm doing until they prove that you don't take advantage of them."

"Fair enough. Now please, follow me."

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(1): A Succur (SOO-coor) is basically a male youkai's soul mate; they are always female; occasionally, there will be more than one male per Succur, meaning that it is possible for more than one male to claim a female as his (however, this is rare, and it is more likely that one of the males is lying, and the female is pretty much able to tell which one is lying); males can tell if a female is his Succur because he will develop a kind of obsession with the female after catching her scent.

Male form is known as Incur (EEN-coor) and the same rules apply to it but in the reverse, of course.

Note: The youkai society almost never results homosexual relationships, even if the youkai is/are half-breed(s).

A/N: I got the idea for these words, and their definitions from mythology, the series Sweep (freaking awesome, by the way), and the Twilight series.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Chapter Three: First Night_**

DISCLAIMER: I only own this fic, nothing else.

A/N: This will probably be my last update for awhile, between term exams, visiting my dad, and leaving the country for a few weeks. Hope you enjoy! X3P

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_"__Fair enough. Now please, follow me."_

He led her into the spacious dining room, and asked her to wait there while he got the food. He went into the kitchen, and leaned against the wall and took several deep breaths.

'Why, of all the females in the village, did she have to be my Succur? Kami-sama, this is not going to be good.'

He took a few more deep breaths, and then he started to bring the food out to the table. He saw the look on her face and couldn't resist,

"Is it really so hard to believe that a guy can cook?"

"Huh? Uh, no, I just never thought about it is all."

"Right, well, could you push that button on the wall next to you?"

"Um, okay."

Looks like he wasn't the only one doing some thinking. She pushed the button, and he immediately heard feet in the hall (A/N: he has not shifted his ears back to their human form, and for later reference he hasn't done the tail either).

"Everybody, we have a perspective new housemate, so please be nice, and introduce yourselves."

All of the girls came in and sat down, although, I doubt you could call them 'girls'; indeed they were all beauties in one way or another. And they had all hoped that they would be his Succur at one point or other in their stays, but they had not had any luck in area. Thank Kami-sama, he thought, because some of these females were just not his type in the most opposite effect; they were all party-girls, totally immodest, and vainer than peacocks; in fact, going by personality, they all added up to the epitome of the blond stereotype; if he were to have one of them as his Succur, he may very well have gone insane and commited suicide as soon as he found out. He looked over at Sakura, standing next to the wall as if she didn't know where to sit among all of them, and truth be told, she probably didn't, so he walked over to her, gently grabbed her arm, and led her over to the empty end of the table. He sat her down on his left, which, in youkai society, was reserved for the alpha-female, if the male and female were mates; if not, then it was reserved for the Succur.

The other females gave their names, almost all in a fashion that told him that they were trying to impress Sakura, the few that didn't were the ones that he hoped she would get along with, mainly because they seemed like the type that she would get along with.

"Sakura, this is Anara, her father works in the Neurology department at the hospital; you may have met him."

"I remember him; I had no idea that he had a daughter, though."

"Yes, well he's not very keen on the idea of mixing his work with his home life."

He left them to their conversation, and turned to the females on his right, asking them if he had missed anything interesting in the past two months thanks to the mission he'd been on; meanwhile, he and Sakura neglected to notice that their tails were twining together.

When everyone was almost done eating, two of the females at the other end of the table started screaming at each other in a language that Sakura could not understand; they stood up and looked like they were about to start a fight, then and there. At this all of the females, including Sakura, got out of their chairs and backed up to one of the walls, but only she went to the wall behind Kakashi, while they went to the wall with the doorway.

As she watched, she guessed that the two were a bear and a snake, one big and brawny, but still oddly feminine; the other, small, thin, with serpentine features. She found her guess to be correct when the large one started to sprout fur and a small hump on her upper back(1), and the small ones skin hardened into scales and her upper fangs lengthened to about one-and-a-half inches long.

Then, they stopped. She figured out why a second later when she felt the tremors, almost like vibrations; she glanced at Kakashi. To the rest of them, he looked somewhat agitated, brows furrowed, ears occasionally flicking, and eyes closed; however, she was behind him and saw his tail, bushed and looking like the plumed icon of a wolf, lashing back and forth like a whip, and she would bet that it would sting like it.

Kakashi couldn't believe it! That these two would do this to him, even after they'd sworn not to do this again. He couldn't take it anymore. He stood up, his chair grating against the floor as it protested the action, his fist connected with the table; it groaned.

Sakura chanced getting next to him, wanting to see why everyone had further shrunk away from him; he'd opened his eyes, revealing pupils so narrow as to be invisible and irises so vivid that they looked acidic. She unconsciously flattened her ears to her head in submission. Then he started shouting at them in the same language they used.

**(Kakashi POV)**

"I cannot believe you two! I have given the two of you more chances than I care to count! I even told you that I would forgive some of your fights if you would just behave like civilized beings, not like a pair of fucking animals fighting over a piece of food," I shouted at them (although to some, it probably sounded like a roar).

"Ka-Kakashi-san, we--" the grizzly tried to start (I'd never really tried to memorize every name in the group, because asking for a name translated to intimacy, and these females kept thinking that asking for a name translated to 'I want to do the horizontal tango with you' or something like that).

"I don't want to hear it! You have just embarrassed me in front of my former student, colleague, and your former house guest."

"Wh-wait. 'Former house guest'? You're not saying...?" The serpent asked, fear making her eyes widen.

"Yes, you have tonight and until I get back from Sakura's house with her stuff tomorrow, to get your things together and say good-bye to whoever you wish. This is your last night in this building for the next seven months."

"What? No! You can't--"

"Yes I can. This is my property, so I decide who stays. Go ahead and take it to the Council, because when they inevitably call me up I'm just going to bring my side of this with me, and use everyone here as first-hand witnesses against you two."

That make them pause. They knew that they couldn't take it to the Council, I was a Councilman after all, and a very well liked one at that.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned my head slightly towards it and inhaled. It was Sakura. I don't really care why, but I instantly started relaxing. I turned back to the problem females.

"I'll let you finish dinner, but you'd better start packing as soon as you get to your rooms." After that was said, I left the room. Sakura followed me.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to see that."

"No, it's okay. I just wasn't ready for it, is all."

"Okay, well, I guess I'll take you to your room now, unless you want to finish dinner?"

"Nah, I'm fine."

I still couldn't believe that she was my Succur, but now for a completely different reason. There was no way that this would work out, with my luck; after all, I _had_ entered ANBU with the unfortunate joke-order that, for everyone else's health, I was 'best if left alone'. I'd thought that I would _never _live it down; but I did... after _six months_, anyway.

**(end Kakashi POV)**

He led her up a flight of stairs, stopping by his room.

"Well, you have to have _something_ to wear to bed." As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sudden thunder of barking; Kakashi looked up smiling, as a small pack of Great Danes ran into the room and practically_ buried_ him under an over affectionate mountain of fur (A/N: If you don't already know, Great Danes are _big ass _dogs).

"Get off, you big lummoxes!" He said, laughing.

They got off of him to reveal a mantle, onyx brindle, harlequin, and a merle; all of them were male. She wasn't a dog expert, but she knew that Great Danes were_ expensive_ to keep; costing an arm and a leg just to feed _one_, let alone _four_... How much money did he have?

She voiced this question to him.

"Maa, like I said earlier; my family is very high up, unfortunately for me."

"What? You know, a lot of people would love to live your life."

"Yeah, but when I say 'unfortunately' I'm talking about the politics. Gods I _despise _politics!"

She couldn't help but laugh at how he looked; face scrunched up as if he had caught a bad smell, ears pointing back just the slightest. The dogs moved off, going to the far wall which had four substantial dog beds lined up side-by-side.

"Their names are Dante, Ace, Rorschach, and Dominic." He said out of nowhere.

"Huh?"

"Their names. The onyx brindle is Dante, the mantle is Ace, the harlequin is Rorschach, and the merle is Dominic."

"Oh, interesting names."

"Well, why not? They're interesting dogs. Dante is always figuring things out--I've gone through three security systems because of him; Ace could be considered a good luck charm when I gamble, especially when it comes to cards; Rorschach's pattern makes everyone feel like they're taking a rorschach test; and Dominic... everyone who sees him says that he looks like a domino."

She took another glance at the four behemoth creatures he called dogs. Now that she knew what to look for, these monsters appeared very similar to their descriptions: Dante's pelt seemed to have a barcode pattern of sorts; the white blaze on Ace's face resembled a stretched form of a spade that you would find on playing cards; Rorschach lived up to his name, the design on his coat perfectly symmetrical, complex, split so precisely down the middle that it looked as if it was drawn with a ruler; Dominic's black patches almost perfect circles in a motif that looked very much like a domino with many, many pips. Then she heard a tiny mew coming from the opposite side of the room; it was the kitten that he'd gotten her.

"How--When did you pick her up?" She asked.

"Same time I picked you up."

Then something clicked.

"Do youkai keep pets often?" She asked.

"You'll never find one that doesn't have a companion; and if they don't, then they're planning to get one soon."

"Are they always the same gender as their owner?"

"Yes, they are. Very good, by the way, on picking up on that. Most half-breeds in your situation would write it off as a coincidence at this point."

She felt oddly pleased by the compliment; she felt like purring. This led to another question.

"Kakashi?"

"Yes?"

"Um... is there... I mean..." she sighed, deciding to be blunt. "Are there any situations where a youkai will feel a very strong attraction to another?"

"Speaking as in... ?"

"Romantically."

"Ah, yes. Well, it's kind of hard to explain; you see--" One of his ears fell to the side, signaling his confusion on how to proceed. It was still weird for her to see those two black, triangular ears, almost to big (probably the fox blood in him) on top of his head, rather than the human ears she was so used to seeing on the sides; but she had to admit, they were kinda cute. Then there were his eyes; she'd thought the shade of bloody-soil had been odd, but now... to basically see two jewel-tones one with a gold film and one with a silver film... they were mesmerizing.

'Damn, how do i explain this in a way that she'll understand?' Kakashi demanded of himself as he tried to think of a reasonable way to tell her about the subject. 'Ah, screw it.'

"How 'bout I just make a list of terms common in youkai gossip, with their definitions, and give it to you tomorrow?"

"Works for me."

With that he grabbed an over-sized T-shirt and a pair of plaid pajama bottoms. She almost laughed when she saw that the shirt said 'Don't worry, I've had my shots' with a picture of ten empty shot glasses below it.

On the way out the door, he grabbed a key off of the board just inside the door and picked up the kitten. He led her down the hall, thinking of any words that she would probably hear quite often when she got into a conversation. Then he remembered something else.

"Sakura, have you ever heard of the Three Domains?"

"Huh? What're those?"

"What?! Gods damn it! I know your father detached himself from the youkai race as effectively as he could, but he couldn't have been so stupid as to not even mention the Domains!"

She'd shied away from him while he was on his little rant. Though she had the feeling that she should get used to them; it was obvious that he was very upset with her father, and would most likely snap his head off next time he saw him. When he'd appeared to cool down enough, she asked,

"What are the domains?"

"No, Domains, with a capital 'D'; anyway, they are essentially the three subdivisions of the material world: The Depths, The Lands, and The Heavens. Every youkai is of at least one of these Domains. You and I, for example, are of The Lands Domain; however, we touch into The Depths because the animals we resemble are known to swim across rivers and, in your case, take a sort of cooling bath in the middle of the day. Knowing this, I'm sure you can figure out which species goes into which Domain from now on, right?"

She nodded.

"So is there any way for me to figure out the names of the youkai clans?"

"Yes, there are some books in my room that give the names of all youkai clans that have ever lived in Konoha. I'll give them to you tomorrow when we get back from your house, along with the list; by the way, any clan that has its name crossed out means that it no longer lives in Konoha, or the clan is extinct."

"Okay, well, night."

"G'nite." He said depositing the kitten on the bed.

"Kakashi?"

"Hm?"

"Thanks."

"... Right."

He closed the door, going to his room.

* * *

A/N: See ya in a few weeks!! 83


	4. Chapter 4, part 1

**_Chapter Four, Part One: He's Back_**

Here's chapter four. Our main bad guy is introduced. To those of you who are fans of his, please don't kill me.

**Bold **= reference to a specific person.

* * *

He walked out of the hospital, his first time in over two years. He stopped just outside the main gate, inhaling the spring air, feeling the sun, uninhibited, on his skin. This. This is what he'd been missing for two years, stuck in the psych ward in the back of the hospital, having contact with no one but the psychiatrist and three visitors, two of whom had stopped coming about a year ago. At the time, he asked himself why. The first one (an old female friend of his) had stopped after an unfortunate incident that he had been unable to control; the second, for reasons he could only guess at; although they were probably the same as the reasons why he wasn't sad to see **him** go: who claimed this territory? who held the most power? and most importantly, who would claim **her**, and begin raising their clans back to prosperity?

He'd found himself thinking like this more and more often, and while he found it odd, he did not find it worthy of more than a few moments of thought at any given time, or even worth mentioning to the shrink.

"Hey man! Glad to see you're out! So, how does it feel to be out of there?" Said the visitor who'd kept coming, keeping him informed about the outside world, and about the other two, **her** in particular.

"So, when did it happen? Yesterday, right?" he asked, in a subdued tone of voice, forcing down his almost overwhelming curiosity.

"Yep, she's staying with him for now, but I can't remember whether she's moving in with him, or the other way around. Neither of them has said anything about why, though. In fact, they are doing all of the moving now. Want to go help out?"

"Sure." He said in the most uninterested voice he could summon.

He'd forgotten the way to either of their homes, so the person who had come to pick him up led the way; although, he didn't remember the way being this long before. Were they taking the scenic route? And if so, why? What was the point? He couldn't answer any of these questions at the time; more to add to the list.

* * *

When they finally got to **her **house, they found that **she** was moving in with **him**, and that they'd already left, heading in the direction of a nearby... _feed store_? What the hell were they doing at a _feed store_? Whatever, he'd ask them when he saw them.

They headed in the direction they were pointed. When they got there, they found that they'd just missed them again; turns out that one of them had bought a building and lived there now, so the address that they knew was now totally useless. He was just glad that they found out before they got to said useless address. So, they had to ask the store owner... after searching for him for _half an hour_, they were able to ask him and found that the person they were looking for had moved to a completely different district on the other side of the village. On a shinobi's salary, he had to ask the question: Where the hell did they get the money to afford that?!

So they started for the appropriate district, again taking what appeared to be the scenic route. Frankly, he was getting sick of this very quickly, and was about to say so when his self-proclaimed escort decided to use a short-cut, cutting the time it took to get there by about thirty percent. When they got there, they found that they'd beat the others back, so they struck up conversations with the people coming and going, most of them women, some of them men, and others in small groups of what looked like the women with men and their parents; although some weren't so small, including the couple, their parents, uncles, aunts, cousins, and grandparents.

* * *

They were there for close to an hour before they finally showed up; according to the ones who'd helped them, Shino and Kiba, they'd hit a few 'snags' along the way, including, going from first hand accounts from the two assistants, three nobles brats, an ex-girlfriend from ten years ago, and two ex-boyfriends.

'Nice to see that their moving along.' he thought, with no small amount of sarcasm.

"Hey guys! Check out who decided to join us in the real world!" shouted the idiot. Gods, before this guy, he had always assumed that everybody spoke in well controlled voices; as soon as he had had one conversation with him, that theory had been blown to hell and came back in shreds.

They looked up from what appeared to be an intimate and riveting conversation (he couldn't help but glare at **him**, trying to steal the one that he'd already claimed, the one who'd given herself to him); when they saw who was shouting, they smiled as if they wanted to wave, but didn't want to risk dropping the boxes they were carrying. Then, they looked for the reason as to why the person was shouting as they were; they froze, their eyes going wide as the proverbial saucers; he could swear that at the time, he'd heard a low growl from **him**, the one he felt he would have to fight one of these days, the one he wanted dead. Then there was the first one who'd stopped visiting, the one he wanted, plain and simple; he felt the growl intensify as he looked over; he witnessed the muscles under that deceptively thin skin tense, as if preparing for battle. Behind them, four animals paused (five, if you counted the small one riding on the head of one of the big ones), giving him the answer to the feed store question; like their master, they began growling.

The first one whispered one word, one word that sealed everything,

"Sasuke."

"Hello Sakura."

* * *

A/N: Chapter is done! I would like to thank my cousin for the beta! And don't worry, all your headaches will be explained away next chapter... right after I get back in the country! Speaking of which, this will definitely be my last update for the month. To those of you who enjoy this fic enough to have read this far, sorry!


	5. Chapter 4, part 2

**_Chapter 4, Part 2: Why Me?_**

A/N: I'M BAAAAAACK!!! The UK was so freakin' awesome! Yahoo! 83

Here's the second part of chapter four, which will explain much of the stuff mentioned in the first part, and then some. Fair warning, it's a hell of a lot longer than part one!

DISCLAIMER: Do I have to have one for EVERY chapter? Just seems stupid to me. It's not like anybody on this website actually _owns_ any of the anime, so why do we have to say it? Don't flame me for it, it's a reasonable question. Anyway, to those of you who didn't come to listen/read me rant, read on!

* * *

When Kakashi woke up the next morning, it was to a wet tongue, a cold nose, one hundred and fifty pounds on his legs, and a whipped back.

"Kakashi, it's time to wake up; you promised the girl that you would help her in today," said a relatively young, intelligent, male voice. Three other voices, also male, concurred.

"I know, Dante. I know. But I won't be able to get up until you guys _move_!" he said as he pushed each of his limbs in separate directions, forcing the four dogs off the bed, and onto the floor. When he sat up while massaging his back, he found them in a neat row at the foot of his bed.

Okay, there are two things that I want to say before we officially start the day: one, her name is Sakura, get it straight; two, how did I get stuck with a bunch of looney tunes like you guys?"

"Then there are two things we would like to say: one, we'll try not to forget; two, you're just lucky like that," they replied in perfect unison.

He sighed, it was to early in the morning to get into an argument with these guys.

His ears twitched, picking up the sounds that meant others were waking up; no one could explain why, but his ears were extremely sensitive, rendering any 'soundproof' material ineffective. This was not a good morning for his hyper-sensitive ears as he heard a very scared, very _loud_ yowl. He immediately clapped his hands over his ears, trying to at least filter some of it; he looked over at his dogs, seeing that they had gotten the same idea, forming a square of sorts and putting their heads under each others torso.

'I have _got _to put something over those vents.' he thought, starting to use his own formula to find whose room that hell-fucked noise came from. The hairs on the back of his neck went straight up when he got his answer.

'Oh shit!'

* * *

She was not having a good twenty-four hours; first her birthday is ruined, next she finds out she's only half human, then she witnesses Kakashi's infamous temper, and now _this_!

'Could this get _any_ worse?' she thought, with a silent groan, pulling the blankets further over her head, hoping no one had heard her.

Apparently, the answer was yes, because just as she finished the thought, she heard,

"Sakura, are you alright?" he called through a gap between the door and its frame.

How was she supposed to answer? She couldn't, so she just stayed silent, hoping he would believe that she was asleep. This hope, though, was, of course, futile, as she heard the door open some more and his feet as they just grazed the carpet.

'Oh no. This is not going to be a good day.'

"Sakura? What are you doing under the covers?"

Again, she didn't answer; but then, he wasn't expecting one.

Curious as to why she would be acting like this, he put his hand where her shoulder should have been, freezing when he felt something that was _nothing_ like Sakura's delicate shoulders; he put a little pressure behind his hand, feeling... aaaah, so that's what's up.

He rested his head just below hers, and frankly, she was getting curious as to what the hell he was doing. Then he started... purring? Why in the world was he purring? Although she was asking herself these questions, she couldn't put any real conviction behind them, the soft thrumming he was producing from his own throat felt_ so good._ Was this really the guy who'd growled up a mini earthquake last night? Slowly she felt herself shifting back to her 'normal' state.

When she was back in control of her body, she had to ask,

"What in the world was that?" she asked, although it was somewhat slurred.

He chuckled, "You went to bed stressing didn't you?"

"How'd you guess?"

"It happens to everybody: they get home, go to bed, fall asleep without calming themselves down, and wake up in full animal form."

"Wow. Have you ever done that?"

"I _did_ have Naruto has my student."

"Good point."

"My lady, would you please ask your friend to move? I'm rather squished."

She jack-knifed up, looking around for the young female voice that had just spoken.

"What is it?"

"I just heard someone."

"What did it sound like?"

"Um, a-a little girl... and she asked if I could get you to move."

"Hm? Oh! Sorry!" he exclaimed, jumping up off the bed, revealing the kitten. Come to think of it, she had yet to name her.

"Please tell him I said 'thank you'."

"Uh, s-she says thanks."

"You're quite welcome. Don't worry Sakura, I'm about to explain."

She closed her mouth, and looked straight at him.

"Well, you see, after a youkai is around an animal of the same family for a certain period of time, they develop a kind of mental bond that allows them to hear each other as if they were speaking. For instance, I can talk to my dogs because I have canine blood. Also, they are referred to as 'partners'. Understand?"

"I think so."

"Good. You can ask me any other questions while we move you in, and I'll answer them as best as I can. Deal?"

"Deal."

They sat there for a few minutes, just looking at each other. Later, they would not be able to say who had made the first move as they slowly leaned toward each other, temporarily forgetting where they were. All they could think was 'what does it feel like'. As their lips brushed together, they could have sworn that a shock passed between them. They leaned further into it, feeling only that they had to get closer to each other, let go of control and let instinct take over.

Sakura jumped a little bit when she felt Kakashi's tounge lick across her bottom lip, asking for entrance into her mouth; she parted her lips, purring when she felt the wet muscle enter her mouth.

Kakashi shivered, feeling as he never had before. Was this all repressed lust? Was it love? Or a combination of the two? He couldn't form a clear enough thought to even try to answer these questions. All he could think about was how good her mouth felt; how she tasted. He felt for her wrist. Finding it, he gently tugged her onto his lap, positioning her so she straddled his hips. As soon as she got settled, the kiss grew more heated, neither of them caring where they were, what they were doing, or who they were doing it with. All they could feel was an urgency that neither of them had felt before; all they could think was 'don't want to stop, don't want to stop'. **(1)**

The moment was broken, however, when a knock on the door sounded, followed by on of the tenants saying,

"Sakura-san? Are you there?"

They froze. Breaking apart, they tried to catch their breath. Whenshe felt that she could speak without giving anything away, she replied,

"I'm fine, just a little weirded out that yesterday wasn't a dream, is all."

"Well, come downstairs when you're ready, breakfast is about to be served."

"Okay, thanks!"

"No problem."

When they were sure that the female had gone downstairs, Kakashi finally spoke.

"Well, that was, um... interesting."

"Definitely a way to wake up, that's for sure."

They looked at each other, then for no obvious reason, they burst out laughing. When they got over their little fit, they leaned their foreheads together, breathing a little heavy from the combination of their kiss and the laughing. Finally, Kakashi spoke up,

"Sakura?"

"Hm?"

"You remember that question you asked me last night?"

"Yeah."

"I think I can answer it now."

"Save it for later, it sounds like an interesting subject, and we might need something like that on our way back."

A few moments later, she heard a somewhat pitiable whimper. Kakashi shocked her by answering.

"Alright you big babies, get your over-sized butts in here."

In came the four giants (she still couldn't believe that these were dogs; they were more the size of small horses) that Kakashi claimed as pets, or partners as she now knew.

"Okay Rorschach, I'll be down in a minute, keep your fur on."

She was definitely going to have to get used to this. She looked the dogs over again, noticing something new about each of them: Dominic had bi-colored eyes, one brown, one blue; Rorschach had symmetrical marks over his eyes (was anything about this dog _a_symmetrical at all?); Ace's white marks all formed regulation playing card suits (A/N: you know: heart, diamond, club, ace?); Dante's fur wasn't the usual colors for a brindle (fawn and black), instead having chocolate brown and charcoal. These were some weird dogs.

* * *

After Kakashi had gone to his room to change, she'd done so herself. When she came downstairs dressed in a pair of jeans and an old flannel shirt that belonged to her dad.

'Oh, shit,' she thought, remembering a _very_ big problem: her parents.

'How the hell am I gonna explain this? They're gonna freak! Oh man, and I was in such a _good mood_.' she thought with a grimace.

"What's got you down? I would've thought earlier would have you smilin' for a few more hours, at least." said Kakashi, coming up behind her, wearing much the same outfit as her.

"My parents. How are we goning to explain this to them?" she asked, looking a little scared about the unavoidable conversation they would be having. Hell, it got his spirits down.

He sighed. "Well, the best plan I can come up with is that we go over, get started like civilized beings while looking for some duck-tape, then tape their mouths shut while continuing our little dialogue, and when we are done talking, we put some earplugs in our ears, then let them have their say while taped to whatever they're sitting on. That sound like a plan?"

by this time she was leaning against the wall, laughing her lungs out. When she'd finally caught her breath she gasped out, "Well, maybe. In the mean time, can we get started to my house so I can officially start moving in?"

"Alright, let's go."

* * *

When they got there, Kiba and Shino were waiting for them. She forced herself to say hello, even though she wasn't in the best of moods at the moment. Would you be if you were having an interesting conversation and two of your ex-boyfriends (from three years ago) come up and try to get you to go on a date with them, only leaving when Kakashi was forced to snarl at and threaten them with first-hand experience of ANBU torture techniques? No? Didn't think so.

Then his ex-girlfriend from _ten years_ ago, comes up, and tries to_ grope his ass _with Sakura standing _right there_. For the love of the gods, did the woman have _no_ sense of propriety? Or modesty? She'd never seen that kind of outfit outside the red-light district.

He could not _stand_ that shalvi; here he is, trying to get Sakura more comfortable around him, and this girl, who he has not seen in ten years and was an experiment, is screwing it all up! (all though it was good when Sakura started laughing when he explained what he meant by 'experiment'; but hey, youkai don't date, and he had been curious as to what made it so fascinating to humans.)

* * *

Luckily the packing didn't take very long, although there were some disputes as to what went into which box between Shino and Kiba, Kakashi and Sakura kept getting side-tracked in conversations, his dogs were a little confused about what they were supposed to carry, and Momo (the newly named kitten) had problems with keeping a grip on the dogs' smooth pelts.

Finally, they got organized and were able to go (her parents weren't home, thank the gods). **(2)**

On the way to their first stop--Konoha Feed Store--she had to ask him,

"What's a 'shalvi'?"

"Well, there's no clear definition, but it translates to something close to the slang definitions of 'bitch' and 'bastard'."

"Huh?"

He sighed, "When humans call someone a 'bitch' or a 'bastard', they mean it as an insult. Well, to youkai, calling someone either of those words would be considered a fact or a mistake, and they would correct you accordingly; if you want to insult a youkai in the same way that 'bitch' and 'bastard' insult humans, you have to call them either 'shalvi' or 'korva'. 'Shalvi' being the feminine form, and 'korva' being the masculine, they translate roughly to 'tainted scum'."

She sighed, "You mean I'm going to have to learn _another_ form of grammar?"

"'Fraid so."

She gave a small mock wail, while he laughed.

After about twenty minutes of walking in silence, she finally asked,

"Wasn't there something you were going to tell me earlier?"

"Hm? Oh, yes. Are you sure you want to hear it? After all, it does include a grammar lesson." he said with a chuckle.

"Ha-ha, very funny. Yes I want to know. It'll keep me from getting bored, and it sounds like a very interesting subject."

"It is. Well, where to start is the first question... Well, first the grammar lesson; the words are 'Succur' and 'Incur', and the literal translation is something like 'other half of self'. 'Succur' is female, 'Incur' is male."

"How do you know if a person is your, um... other half?"

"People usually figure it out when they catch their other half's scent: if that person is your other half, then you would develop a sort of obsession with them; want to know where they're going, what they're doing, who they're with, things like that."

"Huh. Okay, so how do youkai mark their, uh... spouse?"

He snorted, "'Spouse'? Couple of things; one, they're called 'mates' not 'spouses'. Two, they mark them with a bite; often in the area where the neck meets the shoulder."

The conversation continued in this pattern for the rest of the walk back, pausing only when their small group stopped for lunch and for the short breaks when they set down their burdens.

* * *

When they got back to the complex; ironically, and somewhat appropriately named 'The Animal House'; and, if she understood him correctly, it had been that way since it was first opened, so by now, it was well recognized, so there was 'no logical reason', as he put it, to change it seventy years later.

As they got closer to the complex they heard a very familiar voice call out,

"Hey guys! Check out who decided to join us in the real world!" It was Naruto.

They smiled at him, wishing they could wave, but they were carrying the boxes full of fragile items. When they registered what he'd said, they looked in direction he was pointing, freezing when they saw a person they hadn't seen in at least a year; she dimly noticed that Kakashi was growling low in his throat, almost to his chest, and that the dogs were as well; Momo was puffed up and hissing. She was standing there, not believing what her eyes were showing her. His name, unbidden and un-noticed, slipped past her lips.

Then he spoke,

"Hello, Sakura."

Later, she wouldn't be able to say why, but when he spoke, she'd felt like a war had begun.

* * *

A/N: That's it for this chappie. Next one will be up ASAP; but first, poll up! Vote now, and the chapter will be posted a lot sooner.

**(1)** I have never kissed a boy, I haven't even been on a date. So I, personally, think I did very good on that. :3

**(2) **I have also never moved in my life (unless I count the time when I was, like, three. :P)

This plot rabbit (it's grown far too big to be just a 'bunny') is starting to slow down in my brain, so please, **gimme some ideas people, or this rabbit might not make it to another chapter. **Also, I would appreciate some advice on what I could do better. As they say, 'there's always room for improvement'.


	6. Chapter 5

**_Chapter 5: The War Has Begun_**

Alright, here's chapter five. Hope you enjoy it as much as--or more than--you enjoyed the last few chapters.

* * *

_(one hour after the confrontation, inside)_

_The shock of the incident didn't set in until half an hour after Sasuke and Naruto had left for Naruto's flat, halfway across the village. Since then, Kakashi has been fuming, while Sakura has been fretting._

He couldn't believe that bastard! How any sane being could walk into a dominant males territory and act like it was their_ right_, was beyond him. But then, it had been proven _years ago _that the brat was not in his right mind (at one point or another, some people had questioned whether he had ever been in his right mind, and he was starting to agree with them). The next time he saw that little _korva_, he was going to rip him a new one and his throat. Very. Slowly.

"Kakashi, are you alright?" Sakura asked, concerned.

"Yes, Sakura, I'm perfectly alright. Why do you ask?" He replied, using the false hidden-behind-his-mask smile that had served him so well in the past.

"Because I'm getting a weird mental image of you with a cotton swab-like tail and thinner-than-a-thread pupils." She deadpanned.

He couldn't help but shake his head at how well she was adapting to her new abilities. Now all she needed to learn was the language and the politics, and she'd be pretty much set to go.

She didn't understand any part of what had just happened, but she just _knew_ that things were going to get even weirder, and--somehow--more dangerous. She was scared just thinking about the possibilities. All she knew for certain, was that it would probably lead straight to Sasuke. She tried to think about something as unrelated to Sasuke as possible. All she could come up with was Momo, who was at the moment begging to be fed. Along with Kakashi's four dogs, sitting directly behind the afore mentioned kitten.

Finally, he settled down enough to go to the kitchen and pour fourteen cups of dog chow into each of the four large bowls, and set out one small bowl of cat food.

"Sakura?"

"Hm?"

"How would you feel about going to a Meeting with me tomorrow?"

"What kind of meeting?"

"A Council Meeting."

"I'm guessing this is pretty important."

"It is."

"Well then, who am I to refuse?"

"Thank you... Sakura?"

"Yes?"

"Go to bed. Tomorrow promises to be long and trying."

* * *

He'd been right. When she'd woken up she'd felt like crap. But that wasn't the worst of it; Kakashi was standing in her doorway, dressed in something that looked a lot like a three-piece suit without the jacket. The bad part of this little situation was that he was seeing her with a serious case of bed-head, in her Victoria's Secret PJ's, and probably with drool on her chin (she was known to when she was especially tired).

She went red at the image she probably made.

He couldn't help but grin at the sight, but thanks to yesterday's revelation, he knew that she'd only ever be a beauty to him.

'Gods, I am hopeless.'

"Well then, now that you're awake, how 'bout you look at getting dressed? And you might want to hurry, since you'll be taking breakfast with you, as the Meeting starts in..." he checked his watch, "forty-five minutes, and it's a thirty-five minute walk _plus_ another five minutes to get through security."

"You have to go through security?"

"No, you do. It's standard procedure nowadays, because several of the Council Members have received death threats within recent months. And no, it doesn't matter if you've just come in to your powers, they're still gonna check you."

"Peachy." She said, sarcasm lacing the word.

"Yeah. So, come down when you're done, and remember, make it quick."

With that he left the room, and she jumped straight out of bed and ran for the closet.

* * *

She was finished and downstairs in record time. As she was about to head to the front door, he walked the other way, turning her around, and pushing a sausage biscuit into her hands. She watched him head to what she thought was the door to the basement. He opened it, revealing a flight of stairs that lead down to a sort of underground crossroad. She followed him down the steps, where he took a right and she lost all sense of direction and time.

* * *

When he finally stopped at another flight of stairs, she had no idea of where they were, how long they'd been walking, or how far.

He walked up the stairs, talked to the guard, and motioned for her to follow.

"What about the security check?"

"I convinced him to skip it this time. Please do not mention this to anyone when we get in there; they'd skin me alive."

"For what?"

"Good girl."

They entered what, at first glance looked to be a normal boardroom, but if you payed closer attention to the details, you'd see a metallic sheen to the 'wood' paneling, feel the corners of a metal support frame in the twenty or so chairs around the walls, and the table in the middle of the room, which looked as if it been repaired, refinished, and plated over with... steel? What goes on in here that they would need to put steel plates on the table? She crouched down to check the legs of the table and found that they had been through the same treatment.

'By the will of the Shinigami, how violent do these meetings get?'

"Sakura, you have to go sit over there." he nodded his head in the direction of a row of seats along the walls, most of which were occupied by women and children, and a few men.

She took the first seat she saw. It was behind and just off to the side of one of the four large seats at the table. Coincidentally, it was the seat Kakashi took.

"Well then, now that all three of the Domain Lords are here, let's start this Meeting." this was stated by the man in the North seat. Part of her mind--the part that wasn't paying attention to the meeting--found it odd that she'd started thinking about certain things with capital letters.

She let her mind wander a little bit, as things seemed to be going fairly smoothly. The amiability lasted for about twenty minutes or so, until...

"I don't care if he's the legitimate Lord of The Heavens! I don't trust him!" It was Kakashi. What had been said that had garnered such an outburst from him? She started paying more attention.

"My Lord Hatake, surely you must agree that it is his birthright?"

"I do agree. But that doesn't mean that he should receive it."

"I beg your pardon?" the woman in the West seat questioned.

"As you all know, he will soon come into his powers. You also know that the members of his clan, particularly his family, are known to show signs of youkai abilities up to two weeks before his powers awaken."

"Yes? What is your point?" the man in the East.

"My point is that he knows nothing of our politics--"

"I would imagine that your guest knows just as little, and yet she behaves exactly as she should." West again.

"Madam Regent, I understand that you would be a little skeptical, but please understand. He is now within a week of his Powers, and can therefore sense, if not understand Territory Boundaries. Just yesterday, he came onto my Territory, behaving as if it was his own."

The expressions on everyones faces ranged from incredulity to disbelief; from believers to skeptics.

She would have spoken, but Kakashi beat her to it; she also found out what the steel was there for.

His fist connected with the table, leaving a rather sizable dent in the metal. His eyes were acid, fangs starting to show past his upper lip, and his tail was swinging back and forth in slow, powerful movements.

The other three, as well as all of the guests, were floored to see such a reaction out of him, usually keeping to the typical state of mind that was associated with his title: calm, collected, grounded, impartial; overall, a stabilizer. Relationships between The Lands and The Heavens had always been strained, to say the least. But this... explosion... suggested that, should the true Lord of The Heavens take his seat on the Council, Kakashi would murder him in half a heartbeat.

The man in the North seat spoke up for the first time since the beginning of the Meeting.

"Sir, what do you think would happen if he were to take his place among us?"

"He would abuse his position to no end. Probably get the idea that he's aloud to have a harem, over-rule other Council members simply because he doesn't like them and he thinks his way is better. He would destroy our society."

"But he is a raven; they have always ruled The Heavens." The West, which Sakura guessed was The Heavens, as Kakashi had referred to her as 'Regent'.

"I know of three other ravens who would be perfect for the position; why not train and appoint one of them?"

No one could give him an answer.

"Well then, does anybody have a parting statement before we adjourn this Meeting?"

West: "The Heavens will consider Hatake-sama's request for a possible alternative for Our next Lord."

East: "The Depths have no statement to make."

Kakashi: "I am declaring War on The Heavens Heir for personal reasons, a few of which I mentioned earlier. Until he or I am dead, I suggest you avoid the both of us for safety and physical health reasons until then."

"... Very well then. This Meeting is adjourned."

* * *

The next time either of them spoke, they were about half-way back to the boarding house.

"Is it him?"

"Pardon?"

"Is it Sasuke?"

"Yes."

They lapsed back into a tense silence.

"You're not leaving the boarding house without an escort from now on."

"Huh?"

"I don't trust that little bastard."

"But you can't be seen constantly following me. People will think you're a stalker."

"I know that; that's why I'll be taking a mission."

"Say what?"

"I'll get Tsunade to issue me a fake solo mission that will take me out of Konoha for an indefinite period of time."

"You've done this before haven't you?"

"Three times now."

"May I ask why?"

"You just did."

"You know what I mean."

"Yes, I do. And no, I'm not going to tell you; in fact, I'm not aloud to tell you, anyway."

"So what, you're gonna get this fake mission, make sure you're seen leaving the village, get back in the village_ un_seen, shift into your animal form, and I'm supposed to act like I've got a new pet for gods know how long?"

"Pretty much."

"You're crazy!"

"If I got half a yen for every time someone told me that, and my 'crazy plan' _worked_, I could have added three new wings to the Animal House and still have enough left to start work on another one."

* * *

The next morning started well enough, her waking up and feeling well rested for the first time in almost a month. She went downstairs in her Victoria's Secret pj's, not caring who saw her, as Kakashi had made it very clear that he was the only male in the whole building.

When she got to the dining area, almost no one was in there; apparently, she'd woken up earlier than she'd thought. She glanced at the clock on the wall. It was five-thirty.

"And I thought I was the early riser. I've only been up for seven minutes."

She turned her head; there he was, looking for all the world like he'd been up for an hour at least, sitting with a cup of coffee, and a newspaper, wearing a pair of sweats and a faded black T-shirt, with a pair of reading glasses resting on the bridge of his nose; she wondered whether he'd look like this in thirty years, give or take a few lines, maybe his hair being closer to white in color, but still looking much younger than his years.

'No fair.'

"Beg pardon?"

Whoops. She must have said it out loud.

"Nothing. So, when are you going to get your 'mission'?"

"Around noon. I want to be sure that she's fully awake before I go; I'd rather not end up in the Emergency ward because I showed up at eight in the morning."

She had to laugh at that one.

* * *

And sure enough, by two o'clock, he was 'leaving' the village. He told her that it'd be about an hour before he could get back in, and that she should get ready to go grocery shopping when he got back.

By three, she was in the common area, and he'd just come in through the back door. He shifted; his 'clothes' now consisted of a dog collar, and nothing else. He took his human clothes upstairs and came back downstairs with a list and his wallet in his mouth, looking like the epitome of the loyal pet, with big shining eye, and a cutely wagging tail. There were a few problems with the picture though, including his height, black paws and tail tip, bi-colored eyes, and the prodigal gleam in said eyes.

She could already tell that this was going to be very interesting.

* * *

Eventually they settled into a pattern: Whenever she felt like going out, she had to tell Kakashi--seeing as how all the other options were in heat--he would shift, and they'd go out. Soon she recognized her own heat scent, and was only a little surprised at the lack of advances towards her; but she had a feeling it had to do with the scent of her new 'pet', if she had his reputation right. He'd take her with him on the bi-weekly shopping trips, and he would try to act like a normal animal as much as possible.

During these times he would quiz her using an odd mind link she had yet to understand. If she didn't know the answer to a question, he would ask the question every time they went out until she got it right.

Things stayed this way for about three months, showing her that Kakashi's claim that heat scents didn't affect him to be very true. Not once had he even suggested that he wanted her like that during her cycle; and for some reason, she didn't like it.

But as far as Kakashi thought, walking around with her was pure, unadulterated_ torture! _How could he have thought that he'd be able to resist her as completely as all the others? He'd been insane! He was starting to reconstruct his clans pride and joy phrase.

'From now on, it's gonna be **'we can resist every females heat scent _except_ for our Succur's'.** Yeah, that sounds good. Now, for the problem at hand; how do I convince her to come back to the Animal House without her getting suspicious? Oh, gods damn it! Now I'm downwind of her! Could this get any worse?' He thought, just as she walked into a clothing store.

The answer was yes, as a black bird dropped out of the sky, and started attempting to peck his eyes out. He wanted to kill it as soon as he recognized the scent.

'Uchiha!'

Human pedestrians stopped to watch the bird attacking the dog, while the dog tried to rip the birds wings off; youkai ones were trying to get away as fast as possible.

There was no way he was going to stand for it! That this... _fur ball_... dared to even attempt to steal what he'd already claimed as his! It was completely unacceptable! The day he gave her to him was the day he became a toad, or something of the like. He made another attempt for his right eye.

Finally, the dog managed to nip the birds wing. Not enough to severely damage it, but enough to make sure that it wouldn't be flying very well for a while. However, that's not to say that he got away unscathed; indeed, that flying rat did manage to scratch him up a bit, but nothing life threatening.

When she came out, she was shocked. There was Kakashi, sitting in the middle of the road, amidst small tufts of fur, a few scattered black feathers, and more than a few puddles of blood. He was still slightly puffed up, his fur making him look almost twice his actual size; she caught a familiar scent.

'Sasuke.' How could she have forgotten about him? She shook her head, trying to dis-spell the thoughts before they could gain too much force. While doing this, she walked over and, having a sure hold on his leash, took him to Tsunade.

* * *

A/N: Dear Lord! This thing was giving me so many headaches, it's not even funny! But anyway, six chappies and goin' strong! **R** **it feeds the rabbit.**

I've got a new fic idea in my head, so please, tell me what your favorite yaoi pairs are so I can get the dang thing rolling. (if you've got more than one fave, I don't care, send 'em all in!)


	7. Notice

Okay peoples, I got some bad news. I can't come up with anything for the fic. So please, **give me some ideas or the rabbit will starve.** So come on people, you've read the story, please help me. I'm begging you, and appealing to your sense of compassion. (also, I'll give a cookie to anyone who gives me an idea, and five more if I use it.)

-Kit Fox94 :3


	8. Chapter 6

**_Chapter Six: I'm Going to Kill Him. And I'm Going to Enjoy It._**

When they got to the Hokage tower, Kakashi had already fallen over twice, was starting to complain of fatigue, and several other things.

Sakura was just about ready to punch this new secretary (Shizune was on maternity leave) when Tsunade showed up and brought them straight to her office and started the healing.

"Seriously, brat, how do you manage to get into all this shit, ne?"

He whined.

"Alright, alright. Quit your whining, you're staring to make me pity you."

Needless to say, Sakura was _not _expecting this. Tsunade had known about this? For how long?

When she finished with the healing, Kakashi had passed out from blood loss.

"Okay, I'm guessing you're curious about all this?"

She nodded, still too shocked to speak.

"Well, the information is imparted to each Hokage as they take the office; if the preceding Hokage is still alive at the time, then it will be word of mouth; but if said Hokage is dead, there is a special document that the replacement must decode and read before the inauguration ceremony."

"So you've known about this for five years now?"

"Nope."

"Beg pardon?"

"Well, I've had all the _details _for five years, but I suspected for a long time before that."

"What made you suspect?"

"I was the midwife at the brats birth." she said, nodding over to the seemingly normal animal sleeping on the table, "Sakumo had no choice but to tell me _something _after Kakashi came out with a thin layer of fur on his entire body and feeling like he'd just been pulled out of the fridge."

Judging by the look on Sakura's face, she hadn't seen that one coming.

"It's a sort of defense mechanism. Youkai newborns are about thirty degrees cooler than a human newborn when they're born; this is to present the idea of a still birth should there be anyone attending that might want to use the child for... unethical purposes. However, there is a way for the parents to tell if it's a _true_ still birth rather than a normal one; it has something to do with a subtle chemical secreted by a scent gland that... dissolves, for lack of a better word, after about six months. If the chemical is present, then the baby is alive; if not... well, you get the idea."

* * *

When he woke up an hour later, he felt groggy and completely out of whack; he shook it off. At the moment, he just felt like going home and crashing on the couch.

_"So, when were you going to tell me about the whole youkai birth thing?" _Her mental voice rang through his head.

_"When the information became necessary."_ He replied sleepily.

_"You okay?"_

_"Just tired. Being healed by a traditional medic in this form does that."_

_"So we're heading back?"_

_"Yup. And I'm going to jump on my bed, and--literally--sleep for the next fourteen hours."_

_"Wow."_

_"You said it."_

They stopped talking after that, lapsing into a comfortable silence, not knowing that they were being followed.

'So, he's going to sleep for a while? Perfect, that'll give me enough time to convince her to come and stay with me.'

What he didn't know was that his plan would yield... interesting results.

* * *

When they got in, Kakashi held his promise and promptly went up stairs.

She wasn't tired, but she was curious about some of the books he had, so she grabbed one that looked interesting. Turned out it was a kind of geneaology book, full of different family trees, some of them taking up to ten pages. It was actually fairly interesting. She went through that book and went for another; this continued a few times, finally she lost track of time in a youkai novel that she'd (obviously) never heard of, but the funny thing was that she recognized the author as being better known than even Jiraiya. How many other well known people were leading double lives?

While she was reading, the doorbell rang. Doesn't seem very important, does it? Wrong. As some people have learned, answering a simple question could change your whole life.

When she opened the door, she'd expected to see a new tenant or someone of the like. What she got made her scream.

* * *

Kakashi'd left his door cracked, so that if Sakura needed anything, she knew she could come right in; also because this was the one week out of the year when no females went into heat, so he didn't have to worry about being molested, especially by the first-timers.

What he hadn't expected was for her to scream bloody murder.

Without thinking, he bolted down the stairs. In the short time span between his feet hitting the floor and those same feet reaching the bottom of the stairs, he'd come up with fifteen scenarios for why she'd screamed.

None of them came close.

Lying on the threshold of the main doorway was the carcass of a large, white dog; it's neck had been slashed. With the cool efficiency of a battle hardened shinobi, he noted that it had been a single slash which killed the poor animal. That slash had almost gone clean through it's neck. Carved into it's side were the words,

_She will be mine._

The first thing he felt after pity for the creature lying in front of him, was rage. Rage at the last Uchiha for causing all of this. Rage that he couldn't do anything about it at this point.

Rage that he had to involve Sakura like this. Like some... piece of property to fight over.

* * *

She was in a daze.

She couldn't stop staring at the body lying next to her.

She dimly noticed that Kakashi was next to her, in human form, seething at Sasuke for doing this. Later, she would remember him murmuring something incoherent to her and leading her upstairs. She would remember changing into her pj's as if on autopilot.

She would remember going next door and climbing into a foreign bed. She'd remember a warmth at her back, lulling her into sleep.

She had let it.

* * *

He wasn't too far behind her in sleep, but he had one last thought before he let exhaustion claim him.

'I'm going to kill him. And when I do, I'll enjoy it with every fiber of my being. Uchiha, you'd already condemned yourself to die. But now I'm going to have my fun.'

Just as sleep pulled him under, he felt Sakura shift, turning toward him and burrowing closer.

* * *

A/N: I was feeling really morbid when I typed the last half of this chapter. (Note to self: never listen to Nightwish when typing at 3 am. Ever. Again.)

Also, as far as the ideas I've gotten, I've decided to spread them through out the fic. So cookies are still gonna happen, they're just not gonna happen all at the same time. You can still try for a batch if you want, or you can shoot for another, it all depends on you.

Sorry I didn't use any ideas this chapter (although they did give me some inspiration). Everyone who submitted an idea, you get three cookies each. Account holders will find them in their inboxes. Non-account holders will find them here. (hope you guys like chocolate chip, cuz that's the only kind I can make. Btw, do any of you know someone who already does this?)

**Spikey is nuts!** (,;') (".;) (,;.)

**SophiemewmewRAWR **(:".) (.;") (,:.)

and last but not least,

**gigi **(;'.) (,;.) (:'.)

Thanks for reading, see you next chapter! :3


	9. Chapter 7

_**Chapter Seven: She Will Be Mine**_

A/N: Something I forgot to mention, when a youkai shifts from animal to human form, and it's wearing clothes when it's done, then that means that the youkai was wearing a specific outfit that at least partly matches it's fur colors and/or patterns.

The reason I'm mentioning this now is so I can ask you this question: I never mentioned Kakashi was wearing clothes, did I? -chesire grin-

If you get the question, then this next bit should be no surprise: subtle pervy fluff! I have done it! –strikes Gai pose-

* * *

'This feels nice.' mused our favorite panther as she was coming out of her sleep. She lay there for a few minutes, resting on her warm bed. Well, she would have, but there was a slight problem.

Her bed was _moving_.

She started panicking. She inhaled through her nose and relaxed. It was just him. She shifted, but froze immediately.

'What the…?'

When she'd shifted, she could have sworn that there was a lack of fabric between Kakashi and herself. She shifted again. There it was again.

She looked down. And promptly blushed red as Gaara's hair. She could only see down to about where his hips were, but that was low enough for her to see that he wasn't even wearing a pair of boxers. She blushed harder at the images that came to mind, and—almost giving herself whiplash doing it—raised her head to keep her eyes on at least his chest. Bad idea. Now she was looking at a pair of well-formed pectorals covered with smooth skin, and an extreme lack of hair. Now she thought of it, he hadn't had any hair on his body at her birthday seven months ago, either, and he didn't seem the type to shave or wax.

'Huh. Odd.' Shaking all thoughts of his body out of her mind, she tried to scoot away from him without waking him. No luck.

"Mm. What the hell?" he muttered, cracking his eyes open, instantly making eye contact with her. He stared at her for a moment before the happenings of last night came back to him.

His eyes went big as a bug's and his face went red as hers.

"Ah, I—um…" he stuttered.

"Can we just… pretend this never happened?" she begged.

Without answering, he turned his back on her and shifted before jumping out of the bed and trotting to his dresser, pulled open a drawer and grabbed a pair of underwear. Calmly pacing his way to the attached bathroom, he went in and kicked the door closed.

A few minutes later he came back out in a pair of snug black boxer-shorts and asked her with a blank look,

"What were we talking about?"

She giggled.

When she was done he asked her,

"Want to go out? You know, get lunch?"

"Why are you asking?"

"Strategy. If he sees us walking around like nothing's happened, he'll get pissed. If he gets pissed, he might make a mistake and I'll get to rip his throat open wider than a dead carcass that's had vultures and hyenas at it." At least, that's what he told himself.

She agreed and left to go change.

* * *

'Why won't he leave her alone?' thought a very aggravated raven. He watched them leave the complex, them completely unaware, him sitting in plain sight on a roof-top; but then, the fur-brained idiot couldn't be suspicious of _every_ raven in the village, could he?

'Can't he see? She wants him to leave her alone. That's why she goes out so much; she wants to be rid of him.' he raged to himself, accidentally letting out a caw. The flea-bag's ears twitched.

He followed them for four hours. During those hours, he watched. Only watched, looking for something. What? He didn't know. But when he saw it, he would know that that was _it_. That that would be what he wanted. What he needed to get her to leave the fleabag they had once called 'sensei'.

'When I can get her alone. That'll be it. When I get her alone, she'll see. We are _meant_ to be together. And I will show her that. She will be mine.'

* * *

A/N: God I hated this chapter! If I had known that doing even a _short_ chapter through a psychopath's eyes would be this hard, I never would have done it. I didn't even hit my minimum word count (self imposed)! DX And the worst part is that I could think of nothing to let me shift back to Kakashi and Sakura.

By the way, would any of you believe that I'm only a freshman in high school? :3


	10. Chapter 8

**_Chapter Eight: That's It. I've Had Enough_**

Sorry I ran so late with the last chapter. I promise, I will make it up to you guys. Well, here you go. Hope you like.

* * *

When they got back to the complex, Sakura couldn't have been happier... well, she could have, but that's beside the point. She'd had the feeling of being watched all day. And it was creepy. Throughout the day, when she'd felt like someone was raping her with their eyes, she'd look to Kakashi to get some comfort. Something about those doubly-mismatched eyes just... made everything that little bit more bearable. It was actually kind of funny when she thought about it. Every one of her friends said that they felt like they were staring at a pair of cold stones. She felt that they were more like warm pools that she could fall into wouldn't mind drowning in for the rest of her life.

_'Are you alright?' _there was that smooth, careful voice that she loved to hear.

"Yea. Today was just very weird. Did you feel like we were being watched, or was that just me?"

He didn't answer, but instead went upstairs to shift back and get into some clothes. When he came back down, he said,

"You weren't the only one; I felt like someone was going to fall out of the sky and stab me. And I'll just bet I know who."

"Is it really possible for someone to be so obsessed? Even him?" she asked, "I know he was screwed up before he left; and that it only got worse _after--_I mean, who wouldn't get screwed up staying with Orochimaru as long as he did?--but he wasn't this bad even with Itachi! And I could swear that he passed therapy."

"I don't know what's up with the brat. All I can tell is that he obviously should not be out on the streets."

Sakura thought for a moment. "Hold on. I can't believe I forgot about that." She muttered to herself.

"What is it?" he asked, very curious.

"When Tsunade told me about his therapy--right after he started--about what it was, who put it up for consideration, and why it was approved."

"Why's this so important?" although he already had a feeling about what she was going to say.

"Danzo put it up shortly before he _finally_ died."

"Yea. How _did_ he die? Every one's curious."

"... Cancer." He knew what she meant. Sai. Figures.

"Anyway," she got back on subject, "the therapy was designed so that he would not be a threat to the _civilians_. But there was nothing about his fellow shinobi. The council--who unanimously approved it--just assumed that they could defend themselves. Not that they can't, but with Sasuke's Sharingan, anybody can be considered weak. Even you."

He saw her point, loud and clear.

* * *

That night, they ate after everyone else. They just... didn't feel like being in a group right about now.

'The one good thing about that little bastard: he distracted me from her.' as he caught the evidence that Sakura was still very much in heat. 'Why does a female's heat have to last two weeks, rather than one?'

After they were done, Sakura went up to bed, while Kakashi washed the dishes. That was his excuse, anyway. In reality, he was trying to cope with everything that had happened in the past four months... Gods, had it really been four months?

He bit his hand to stop from laughing.

When he was over his moment of hysteria, he went upstairs to head to bed. Before he climbed in ,however, he thought that he should check on Sakura. No particular reason, he just felt like he should. When he got to her door, he heard singing. Listening a little closer, he caught this:

_Hold me tonight,_

_Like an angel in the sky,_

_Hold me so tight,_

_'Cause in your arms I feel so high._

_You broke my heart right from the start,_

_I never let you go,_

_Hold me tonight,_

_'Cause I need you._

The music cut off. He wondered what she thought was wrong with the song; seemed fine to him. But, he wasn't one to talk. After all, how many men in their thirties listened to Disturbed, Halestorm, Buck Cherries, Shinedown, and other groups like that? As far as he knew, he was the only one.

He pushed open the door, not expecting to find her in her bra and underwear. But that's how he found her nonetheless. He just stood there, looking at the sight before him like a starving man looking at a feast. There she was, standing in the middle of the room in a dark-green lacy bra and panties set with her tail and ears present, with her tail making curling motions against her legs. She must have been out of it, because he stood there for a good five minutes just looking.

When she finally turned around, she stared right back. The first time she'd seen him in less than a full set of clothes, had been her last birthday. That had been when she was still 'human' and only had a crush on him. She considered this the first time that she'd seen him through the proverbial clear glasses; the last time didn't count because she'd been out of it with fear and horror.

So she took a _very good_ look.

Smooth, pale skin stretched over taut muscles; fine, semi-feminine features adorned his face. There were scars, of course, no shinobi can avoid those. But they weren't very large, the widest and longest ones being about as big as a single blade on a shuriken. Wounds that would have resulted in larger scars were healed so that any scars that happened were as small as possible, so that they would _inhibit_ him as little as possible. The features that would have freaked her out six months ago, now made her feel even hotter for him. Pitch black ears nestled themselves in his hair, and a tail hung to just below his knees... the white part anyway. The last few inches hung half way down his calves, colored exactly as his ears. He was wearing a pair of dark purple boxers.

They stood there, neither one knowing how long; it could have been a minute, ten minutes, even an hour. When one of them finally spoke, it was Sakura.

"Kakashi."

He absently closed the door with his foot before stepping towards her. Two steps. Two steps and fifteen seconds, and he was in front of her, his chest on level with her head. She stared at his throat for a minute before lifting her eyes to his. She breathed his name again while winding her arms around his neck. He let her pull his head down.

It was nothing like their previous kiss, which had been careless and rushed. Fueled by adrenaline rather than attraction--a quick release of tension that was only short term; like a match. This one was languid, a slow passion that would build into a bonfire and last for a long time to come. They parted when air became an issue, but only by an inch. Their eyes met.

"I want you." Her.

"I need you." Him.

"I love you." Both.

He backed her up to the bed.

* * *

He enjoyed watching her. Especially as she got ready for bed. When Kakashi came into the room, his good mood started to dim. After he watched the afore mentioned events, he was enraged.

As Kakashi walked her to the bed behind her, he saw red.

He watched them undress each other of the few garments they still had on. They 'played' with each other for a while, and then Kakashi entered her. She curled in on herself just slightly while the bastard rubbed her back.

'Even when he makes a pitiable attempt to please her, he still causes her harm! Sakura, how could you allow this?' He ranted to himself.

After they finished, Kakashi shifted them under the blankets, like the 'gentleman' he was. Puh. Yea, right.

He left for the apartment he'd been granted by the village, fuming all the while about how he would punish Sakura for disloyalty and kill Kakashi for taking her innocence, no doubt against her will. The bastard had probably slipped her something. That was the only thing it could be. That was the only thing he would believe.

Through out the entire thing, he never noticed the ears or tails.

* * *

As they lay there under the slowly warming sheets, she rested on her stomach, he on his side. Their tails twined as he ran a claw up and down her spine. Neither of them knew that they'd had an audience until recently; luckily for them, or Kakashi's next actions might have gotten him killed and her kidnapped and raped.

He looked to her for permission. She gave it. He leaned over her; she moved her hair and shifted onto her side, facing him. He sunk his fangs into her skin, right below the left side of her collarbone and stayed there for a few moments. When he let go, he stayed to lick up the blood; after the flow finally slowed enough to show signs of clotting, he got out of the bed and went to the bathroom to get a first aid kit. It took him a few moments to find it, and after he found it and headed back to the bedroom, she was sitting up and waiting patiently. She helped him apply the salve and wrap the bandages. As that was completed, he carefully laid her back to the bed and spooned up against her. Within fifteen minutes, her breathing had evened out; his didn't even out for another hour.

* * *

A/N: It's not my longest chapter in the world, I know. But it's better than the last one, in my opinion.

But I am shocked at my self. This chapter came out in less than a week!


	11. Chapter 9

**_Chapter Nine: Peak_**

Here it is. Chapter 9. Thank y'all for being so patient with me, and I hope you enjoy.

* * *

When Sasuke woke up the next morning, he was even more pissed than he'd been the night before. Although that might have something to do with the fact that he was fuming until he fell asleep and even dreamed about it. Before, he'd been willing to wait. Now, he wanted to see blood.

* * *

When he yawned awake, his first thought upon opening his eyes was that he'd never slept so good. When he turned his head, he decided that this was how he wanted to wake up from now on: with an attractive woman next to him (specifically this one), pleasantly sated, and several other things he didn't feel like thinking about at... he looked at the clock... nine in the morning. He turned back to the cat in his bed and started nuzzling at her neck to wake her up. When that didn't work (it only succeeded in making her curl closer, not that he was complaining), he started rubbing her leg. No luck. Hm, okay, if that was how she wanted to play. He bent his head toward the now scarred-over circle of punctures on her breast and licked at them.

Bingo. She jack-knifed up, managing to grab the covers as she went, and looked around the room like an Energizer Bunny on crack, her tail looking about three sizes bigger than it was just a few minutes ago and sticking straight out like some furry broomstick. The picture before him was too much to resist and he fell out of the bed laughing. She finally noticed she wasn't alone and turned to look at him, guessing what he was laughing at and glaring at him, which just sent him even further into his fit. When he'd calmed down enough to speak, he proposed breakfast in bed. He didn't expect her answer though, or how it was worded, anyway.

"Nya." That was it, but she said it with just the right face that he thought he was actually talking to a cat and not a woman he'd deflowered just the night before.

"Pardon? Could you repeat that?"

"Sure. But you're getting it. I'm too sore to move."

He was back on the bed immediately and grabbed her shoulders.

"What? Did I hurt you?"

"Huh-What? No! I mean good-sore."

"Naa? What's that supposed to mean?" The first word in that sentence sounded a lot like the 'nya' she'd said a few moments ago.

She thought a moment. "I'm sore, yes." He flinched. "But it doesn't hurt. It's kind of like how you feel after a really good massage: you're tender, but you feel so relaxed that you don't care." He relaxed, a slow smile spreading across his face.

"Well, that's good. So, how 'bout that breakfast?"

"Yes, please."

He went to make it and was gone for almost half an hour when she caught some very delicious smells coming her way.

He walked in wearing a pair of grey-plaid flannel pajama bottoms and carrying a tray loaded with food. Her stomach greeted him before her mouth could, causing her to blush and him to laugh.

"Nice to know I'm well received." He stated as he set the tray on the comforter while she stared at it. "Don't worry, none of it's poisoned."

"I'm not worried about that. I was just thinking about how long I should wait before attacking that tray of food."

It amazed him just how she could make him feel so at ease even when he was supposed be feeling tense or something of the like. Which reminded him of the main reason he'd offered her breakfast in bed.

"Sakura, there's something I want to discuss with you. It's about last night."

She swallowed before saying, "What about it? Didn't you like it? I don't want to sound like I'm making excuses, but it _was_ my first time and--"

"Sakura!" he interrupted. "I'm not complaining about last night; actually it'd be easier to list the things I wouldn't _complain_ about and would like to see happen again," he said with the biggest grin on his face. (A/N: you've got to have at least one perverse comment come out of his mouth or he's OOC.)

She came right back at him with her reply,

"Really? How soon are we talking?" He'd almost forgotten something very important: she was past the peak of her heat, but she was still _in heat_.

He grinned, "Oh, I dunno, maybe within the next twenty-four hours if I'm lucky."

"How 'bout as soon as we're done eating?"

He moved the half empty tray to a desk at the other end of the room and lunged onto the bed and her.

She laughed out a cry just before their lips connected. After that, there would be very few words, most of them encouragements.

He started stroking her body, going from shoulder to knee and back, alternating between gentle strokes with his palms and harsher ones with the inch-long claws ones his fingers. She began clawing at his back, breaking the skin in places and sending blood down his back in stark tracks. He nipped at her neck, making her throw back her head giving him all the access in the world. His hand found its way between her legs and started teasing the warm flesh it found there. She began to mewl and groan low in her throat; he'd never heard anything more arousing.

She was in heaven and hell. He played with her body relentlessly, forcing her to new heights and then pulling her back just before she could reach that peak. She begged him to let her finish, begged him to take her further. He took her further alright, his mouth finding plenty to take in when he reached her core; she'd been forcing back her cries for a while now, but she couldn't hold them back anymore after that, a piercing scream tearing it's way out of her body and into the air. Still, he refused to let her reach completion.

He turned her onto her belly and finally entered her. She gasped from the sensation, her body still slightly tender from the night before. His hands gripped her where her body met her legs, pulling her tighter to him each time he thrust into her womanhood. Her tail slid back and forth on his body until it looped around his neck and pulled his head down to meet her in something that resembled a kiss, teeth clicking and catching, tongues battling for dominance; he wasn't going to have any of that, no, she was going to know her place: right under him. Always.

His ears lay flat against his head as he forced her body into submission, at last letting her come and following close behind with a howl that shook the walls slightly. She let out a shriek that hurt his ears, but he continued to pound away at her, taking her higher and higher. When he let out a final, low growl of satisfaction hours later, she knew _exactly_ where she belonged: sated and sore below him. He collapsed next to her, panting like a man starved for air; which he probably was. She was still on her belly, now purring and lazily thinking of the mess that was most likely between her legs, her tail curling over her in random loops and twists.

He turned on his side, looking at her, stroking her back lightly.

"There's something I want to talk to you about."

She turned her head to face him.

"Wuh?" It came out slurred, showing just how worn out she was.

He continued rubbing her back. "I was thinking of finishing with the bogus mission I'm on, and maybe start officially 'dating' you. Wha'cha think?"

"I thought youkai don't date?"

"They don't, but you are still technically human, and your parents would throw a fit. So, I'm suggesting the plan as me, returning to the village, and you and me revealing our 'behind-everyone's-back' relationship--which isn't exactly a lie," she had to agree with that, "and then we continue as if everything is normal while I try to find a way to kill that annoying little rat."

"Mind if I help?"

He blinked at her while a slow smile spread across his face, eventually turning into a full-blown toothy grin, showing off those teeth that had probably ripped out more than one throat in his life.

"Be my guest. And I was hoping that the dating could go a little fast, we get engaged and hopefully married within the next two years; as I understand, engagements usually last about a year."

"Sounds like a plan to me. So, when are you planning on getting home?"

"Maybe in a few hours."

"Could you push that clock forward a bit? I want to show you off as much as possible." He couldn't help but laugh at the playful look on her face. "Well," she continued, " I am going to take a shower _by myself_, because we'd be in there forever if you went with me and you are going to wait outside the door and when I come out, you will immediately go inside, clean up, and get out of the village so you can 'get back from the mission' which I assume is classified?"

"Of course."

"Then I'll see you in a bit."

* * *

The beginning of the plan went off without a hitch. Kakashi returned to the village, they announced that they were dating (much to the anger of a certain bird), and they talked to Sakura's parents.

"Sakura, I have to know something. Do we have to send invites to your parents?" He asked as they walked back to the boarding house.

"Yep. It's custom."

"Damn it."

* * *

He was going to kill him. Soon. He wanted to, so bad. He never understood the attraction between them, a woman in her prime, incredibly beautiful, and a man fourteen years her elder, pushing retirement age for shinobi and probably scarred beyond all belief. It just didn't seem like a good match to him.

* * *

She paused and slapped her forehead.

"Damn it!"

"Hm? What is it?"

"I've got to head over to Ino's; she borrowed something from me and never gave it back."

"You want me to come with you?"

"No, no, I'll be fine." She ran off, heading in the direction they'd just come from before turning a corner.

He didn't know why, but he was worried about her.

* * *

The next time he saw her, she ran to him and it was almost like she was trying to hide from something. Or someone.

"Sakura? Was it him?"

She nodded.

"Sakura? Baby? What did he do to you?"

"H-he tri-ied to kidnap me but I mana-aged t-to get away before he could knock me out," she gave a nervous chuckle, "I hope he doesn't mind having a few scars on his pretty face." After saying this, she was visibly calmer.

"What?"

"I went to slap him, but my claws... slipped out and I slashed him instead," she gave him such a fake apologetic look that he had to laugh. She held up her hand, and he could see just a few flecks of red under her nails. He leaned in and sniffed at them. Yep, that was blood. With that stench that could only come from a raven.

* * *

A/N: Man! After I got to that lemon, things went a lot smoother! XD

I would have taken it further (and I tried to), but after this bit up here, it just wouldn't come out. See ya next chapter!


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